The present invention relates generally to ice dispensing equipment and in particular to ice dispensing equipment for dispensing ice into a cup.
Ice dispensing equipment is well known and generally employs an ice retaining bin and an ice chute connected thereto. Ice is dispensed from the bin through the chute and into a suitable receptacle. Dispensing of ice is typically initiated by actuation of a switch which operates an electrically driven dispensing mechanism. Particularly in equipment which combines the dispensing of ice and beverages, the ice dispensing mechanism consists of an agitator that agitates ice retained in the bin to prevent congealing and agglomeration of the discrete particles of ice into a mass of ice and to keep the discrete particles in free flowing form and that, during an ice dispensing operation, moves and lifts the ice to and through an ice outlet opening in the bin so that the ice can fall under the force of gravity down and out of the ice chute into a receptacle held beneath the chute. An ice door or gate is used to control passage of ice through the bin outlet opening, such that the gate opens the bin opening when ice is to be dispensed and closes the opening to block further passage of ice through the opening when the desired amount of ice has been dispensed. It is known to operate or power the ice gate between open and closed positions with a solenoid, but that approach adds undesirable cost to the ice dispenser. Purely manually operated ice gate mechanisms are also known, but such gates are subject to issues such as mechanical complexity, difficulty of disassembly and cleaning, lack of reliability and an inability to provide sufficient mechanical advantage for reasonable manual operation of the mechanism. Some manual dispense systems require movement of the chute itself, but that approach introduces errors relative to accurately targeting the ice pieces into a receptacle. It would therefore be desirable to have a manually powered and operated ice dispensing system that operates effectively, is low in cost and mechanically simple and easy to clean, and that provides for an enhanced flow of ice and targeting of ice accurately into a receptacle.